For Love And Truth
by darkmoonvampire
Summary: Claire died instead of Steve. Years later standing by Wesker's side she fights those she used to call friends. Chris leads Steve and Sheva through Africa in hope of saving Claire and the world from destruction. Wesker is determined to change the world in his image and will stop at nothing to achieve his goal. Claire must choose between her future and her past. Weskerx ClairexSteve
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Switched

Upon seeing the slimly insect cocoon stuck securely on the wall, Chris Redfield cautiously approached it to see what was inside. Seeing a human figure that resembled a teenage boy lying unconscious, he wasted no time in pulling out his sister's trusty combat knife that he had recently found abandoned in the secret facility. Which had seriously concerned him as Claire wouldn't go anywhere these days without, it was her lifeline as it saved her life in Racoon City several times.

He swiftly cut away at the rubbery, sticky wrapping being careful that he didn't accidentally cut the boy in his haste. As most of the cocoon now lay on the floor, the unconscious boy slumped into Chris' strong arms that then gently sat him on the floor and propped up against the wall.

The boy's red hair appeared to glow in the dimly lit hallway that was adjacent to the staircase. He slowly stirred back into the conscious world and his eyes snapped wide open, taking in his surroundings he turned his head until his crystal blue eyes landed and focused on Chris' bleak expression.

Chris knelt with his left hand resting on his knee, down in front of the confused teenager so that their eyes were level. "Hey you okay?" He asked as he placed his right hand on the boy's shoulder to reassure him. "You're safe now." Chris stood up and offered his hand to the boy. "What's you're name?"

The boy just stared at the hand offered to him before glancing back to Chris' face. Deciding to accept his offer he cautiously accepted Chris' hand and stood up rubbing the back of his head. "I'm Steve, Steve Burnside. Who are you?" Steve looked around; he couldn't remember what happened just before he woke up.

"Chris Redfield, you haven't seen a Claire Redfield by any chance?" Chris put his sister's combat knife away and offered Steve a spare handgun that he had found in one of the weapon cabinets on his travels.

Steve took the gun from Chris, inspecting it's clip before holding onto it tightly. Suddenly all of his memories from the last several hours came flooding back and he exclaimed. "Claire! Yeah I know her, we escaped that island together, we we're in the snowmobile finally escaping this place when something grabbed the vehicle and throttled us all the way back here."

That's when Alexia's insane crackle of laughter echoed throughout the room. "Lost something have we?" She spoke in a mocking tone then laughed mechanically again, pulling her head back slightly.

"Alexia!" Chris shouted at her taking a step closer towards the staircase. He felt his whole body tense with rage as if sensing the danger that she truly possessed under her innocent complexion.

"You mean there really is an Alexia?!" Steve asked shocked as he followed Chris' gaze up at Alexia.

Alexia suddenly turned and walked quickly out the door completely ignoring their shouts in ordering to come back to them. Chris and Steve looked at each other before chasing up the stairs after Alexia, when suddenly a huge tentacle burst in through the door and charged straight towards them.

They both rolled out of the way in separate directions, the floor underneath where Chris had rolled to, gave way and he stumbled down to the floor below with the rumble crashing on top of his legs. The huge tentacle disappeared as quickly as it had come. Steve was still on the floor of the landing, so he warily crawled to where the stair had caved in and looked down to see Chris sitting up gripping his leg tightly.

Claire's anguished scream ripped through the room like an earthquake, shattering the their hearing.

Chris looked up at him with worry clearly etched on his usually calm and collected face and shouted, "Just go help Claire I'll be fine!"

Steve nodded in acknowledgement and wasted no time in scrabbling to stand up and dash through the door. Steve ran as fast as his legs would allow him and he pushed them even further down the eerily silent corridor, upon reaching the electronically locked door he swiftly got out the security card and swiped the panel on the wall. When the door opened he raced down the dark corridor, which his legs burning in protest to the exercise abuse, where dozens of statues were on either side of the path. At the end he could clearly see Claire strapped to a chair with an axe blocking her escape.

Steve ran and didn't hesitate to unlock the restraints that bounding her securely to the stone chair. "Claire?" He called to her gently with desperation underlying his tone. He gripped the axe with both hands while placing a foot against the wall for support and begun pulling at the axe, trying to bravely rescue her.

"Steve?" Claire asked as she slowly opened her eyes. When she was fully aware of what happened she stared into Steve's eyes. "Alexia said she was going to experiment on me, just like what she did to herself!" Claire grabbed onto the handle of the axe and tried to help Steve push it away from her.

"It's no good, it won't budge!" Steve said frantically letting go of it and placing on hand on Claire's shoulder.

Claire's heart suddenly began to beat rapidly above normal. She let go of the handle and started gripping her hands together over her chest, her skin went as white as paper dangerously quick, and she begun gasping for air trying desperately to inhale oxygen into her lungs.

"Claire what wrong? Claire?!" Steve was panicking now as Claire thrust his arm off of her shoulder with incredible strength that sent Steve stumbling backwards.

"My entire body burns!" She screamed out in agony as she struggled and writhed in the chair.

Steve stared at her in shock, disbelieve, disgust and anger as her skin changed to a dark green colour that slowly consumed her entire body, her beautiful sky blue eyes transformed into a crimson red, her right hand shook violently as the bones snapped and reformed themselves into a giant claw, her clothes began to tear and shed in places where they strained from her mutated body.

Steve took several quick paces backwards in shock while he felt his heart shattering into a thousand tiny pieces.

"No…" He whispered as he raised his hands in front of him, for protection.

He couldn't believe that the girl he had met several hours ago had transformed into one of those monsters that the two of them had been facing together and exterminating to get free of this chilling nightmare.

Claire gripped the axe handle snugly and effortlessly ripped it out of the wall as she stood up and readied herself to kill. Steve saw the murderous glint in her crimson eyes and ran as fast as his incredibly tired legs would carry him, towards the gate that was rapidly closing, leaping and jumping every now and then dodging Claire's attacks. With each one she got closer to hitting him and after each one she became more aggressive.

Steve dived and rolled under the gate just as it closed behind him. Claire angrily swatting at the gate with the giant axe with her mutated claws. It wouldn't be too long before the steel bars gave way to her bombardment.

Taking a few moments to catch his breath, Steve looked despairingly up at the monster that Claire had become he thought _It's hard to believe that someone looking as pretty as Claire being turned into a monster that she is now._ Leaning against the wall, Steve wiped away some sweat from his forehead and tried to come up with a plan to get out of this crazy mess.

Unfortunately the huge tentacle that had attacked him and Chris earlier, decided to return at that precise moment and came crashing in from the other door and wrapped itself around Steve's body tightly, making sure he couldn't escape. Steve despite his best efforts was helpless in the tentacles grasp.

At that very moment Claire broke through the gate and stepped towards where Steve was being held. She raised the axe and swung it eagerly at his neck. Steve expecting to feel pain or nothing at all, he had closed his eyes when Claire had swung, now opened them curious and dumbfounded to see the blade of the axe merely inches away from his neck.

Steve looked up at Claire and saw that she was intensely staring into his astonished eyes. "St…eve…" She managed to croak out as she swung the axe swiftly down onto the huge tentacle and severed it. The half holding Steve fell lifelessly to the ground and the other half smacked straight into Claire's rib cage and sent her flying into a wall, dropping the axe, the tentacle then retreated.

Steve was lying and panting for breath on the cold, hard stone floor slowly picked himself up to a standing position. He stared in disbelief as the monster before lay on the cold floor reverted back to Claire's frail human body, her clothes now sagged a bit from being stretched. Steve cautiously walked up to her and knelt down beside her. He placed his right hand down onto her wound on her stomach that was bleeding severely.

Claire slowly opened her sky blue eyes and took his other hand in his and placed it on her cheek. She stared into his eyes as one single tear fell down her delicate face and Steve wiped it away with his thumb. Claire smiled weakly at him and he returned it back at her.

"Claire… just hold on… You were right you're brother, Chris came for you… just hold on and we'll take care of you…" Steve choked out as he took in her vulnerable state, she was still so very pale and he couldn't do anything to help and take care her wound.

"Steve…I…broke…our… promise…fortunately…Chris always keeps his…" Claire smiled weakly again at Steve before turning her head to the side; she knew there was nothing anyone could do for her now. "Forgive…me…" she whispered and then Claire was gone.

"No!" Steve cried out, wrapping his arms firmly around Claire's body he cradled her side to side. "I love you Claire…" Steve just sat there with Claire in his arms cradling her lifeless form.

A/N: I hoped you enjoyed it. I'm re-writing the story and giving it some much need massive improvements and probably changing some of the later chapters as I'm changing the direction of the story. Keeping my promise to a dear reader! Please let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Departure

Chris finally removed all the rumble that had toppled on top of his legs and staggered a little while rubbing his knees, forcing his injured body to move in order to find out what happened to Claire and Steve.

'_What was taking Steve so long in finding Claire and bringing her back to him?'_ Chris asked himself as he looked down at his watch and he noted that Steve had been gone for over ten minutes now.

Getting more and more worried as the minutes rolled on, Chris discovered a passageway that led to another set of stairs and he almost tripped up in his haste to reach his darling sister. After sprinting down the corridor that Steve had darted through only fifteen minutes ago Chris couldn't shake the feeling that something had gone horribly wrong and only hoped that he arrived in time to help. When he finally reached the end of the corridor that just seemed to go on forever, he could faintly hear someone crying, it was definitely a guy that was crying. Walking up cautiously up to solid metal door that by the looks of it was electronically locked, Chris pressed his face on the cool, metal surface and called through. "Hello, Steve is that you? Did you find Claire?"

He heard the crying stop just long enough to speak through sobs. "Claire's… she's… Claire…" Steve forced out and then began to cry again. "No, Claire… please… come… back…" He heard shuffling on the other side of the door and just pictured Steve cradling a lifeless Claire in his arms.

Chris placed one shaking hand on the doorframe; everything around him just seemed to stop. He knew exactly what Steve was trying to say, he'd done the exact same thing to Claire when their grandparents had finally passed away. But still that didn't make the pain go away. '_Claire can't be dead, she just can't! No I failed her… my little sister…' _Snapping out of his sorrow, Chris realized that his sister wouldn't have wanted him and Steve to die over their grief for her loss. She would want them to get out of this place and take down Umbrella and insured the safety of everyone on the entire planet, before even considering mourning her death.

"Steve can you open this door?" Chris asked as he looked around and concluded that there was no way for him to open the door on his end.

A few seconds later Steve's quiet reply came through the door. "No." He paused as he sniffed and held back the tears. "You'll have to activate the self destruct to disable all the locks on the doors. It's the only way it'll open. Plus we can't leave this facility intact."

Chris knew exactly where to go. He had seen something that resembled a control room and he betted that was where he'd be able to activate the self-destruct. He wasted no time running down the corridor and into the control room, seeing the only computer that was still active he approached it and read on the screen '_insert password'._

After typing in the password that also served as the command code 'Code-Veronica' the lights dimmed and turned red. "This facility will self-destruct in five minutes. All doors have been unlocked to allow proper evacuation procedures." The female computer voice kept repeating over and over again.

Chris headed back to where he left Steve. Opening the door he saw the boy cradling his sister, it was a shock to his system to see her lifeless body with his own eyes. He closed his eyes and clenched his fist; he couldn't get the overwhelming feeling of defeat and failure to shake off. But he knew that she'd want them to live, continue the fight and finish what Umbrella started, and to do that they had to get off this ice block.

Chris yanked Steve to his feet and when the computer announced the time limit they had they ran without a second's hesitation, when they reached the platform that led to the lift that would take them to the plane, Alexia stood blocking their way. In front of them she transformed into a huge green gigantic bug thing. Slime and other mucus covered her, that and many more vines. Her eyes were as white as paper and she stunk of something dead and rotten.

Chris and Steve teamed up and fired most of their rounds into her. Green acidic blood sprayed everywhere, Chris and Steve were lucky that none of it touched them. They unlocked the huge gun thing where someone had input the self destruct system. Chris had a fairly good feeling that he knew who would have done it too.

He handed the gun to Steve that's when Alexia left her spider like body and being a flying insect. Steve aimed at her chest and scored a direct hit. Alexia fell to the ground causing the platform to shake. "Two minutes remaining."

Chris and Steve pegged it through the ice room, where Steve had shot Alfred Ashford and him and Claire used the digger to break through the wall. But stood in there way now was none other than:

"Wesker, how I hate what you've done." Chris said as Steve looked from one to the other utterly confused.

"Not as much as I hate you. But we don't have time for chit chats now do we? You see I want you to activate the self-destruct, hoping it would take you down. Permanently."

"Sorry Wesker but Alexia is dead, Steve shot her down and we have no intention of dying here." Chris said calmly waving his hand in front of Steve, who eyed Wesker with a death glare.

"I see, so this is Mr. Burnside's lad? Ah but you see Chris I don't need Alexia anymore I have something much better than that lame excuse of a specimen." Wesker paused as he saw the two men in front him look utterly and completely confused. He was going to enjoy this. "Why don't tell me you've forgotten about Claire already? She'll make a wonderful prize for me and my people to work on."

"You sick and twisted man you leave her alone! Don't you dare touch her!" Steve shouted at the top of his lungs and stepped forwards towards Wesker but Chris placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks.

"Too late for that my boy, my men have already taken her to our new headquarters. But maybe she'll come back alive just like I did, and bring you to me Chris, and maybe she'll come back for you Steve, who knows? Or maybe I'll use her for my very own purposes." Wesker emphasised the last sentence purposefully knowing that it would strike a nerve in the other two men and with that he turned and ran away using his superhuman speed and left them.

Steve and Chris were stunned at Wesker's last words before he departed but they had no time to contemplate on them. They both physically shook themselves back into reality and ran towards the hangar; they had to fight their ways past dozens of zombies but the adrenaline coursing through their veins made it easy for them.

Chris piloted the aircraft out of the hangar just in the nick of time as the facility exploded in the background barely a minute after they departed.

Steve stared out at the ocean below and tried not to think about Claire's last moments alive with him. They had only just met and yet they had somehow formed a deep bond between them so quickly. He wouldn't nor couldn't forget a girl like Claire.

'_I vow that if you're alive Claire, we shall meet again and travel to Hawaii. I promise.'_

A/N: So sorry for the incredibly long delay, don't honestly know what happened. Hope you liked it and please let me know what you think as it's appreciated. Once again sorry for taking so long.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: A Chance

Several years had passed since the Rockfort Island incident and Claire's death. Chris headed off to join some anti bio-terrorism group that was being funded by pharmaceutical companies that rivalled Umbrella.

The good news was that Umbrella collapsed after the deaths of Alfred and Alexia and the Raccoon City atrocity that happened earlier that year. However there had been no signs of Wesker or the people he was now working with.

Steve had spent the last seven years trying to live a 'normal' life, but he couldn't move on and of course he could never forget the girl who had given him his salvation, Claire Redfield. He lived his life for her, in a way he thought she would want him to live.

A life worthy of her memory.

One day he received an email from Chris saying he had begun work with an organisation known as the BSAA who fought bio-terrorism and they had discovered something that he would definitely want to see.

'_Sounds urgent, I better get going and see what it's all about.' _

Well nothing could have prepared him for what he saw and heard. He had flown to Washington and met Chris in BSAA headquarters and all the hallways looked the same that he was amazed that Chris knew where he was going.

He was stumbled into a conference room, where Chris and a bunch of BSSA operatives were waiting for him.

"Show him." Chris demanded and a lady with short blonde hair walked over to him and placed two photos down on the table in front of him.

Steve stared down at the photos, and cautiously picked them up. The first one was a picture of a woman with long blonde hair and silver eyes and he was about to ask who it was when Chris supplied the answer.

"Her name is Jill Valentine, she was my partner. We believed she was dead after the two of us had an encounter with Wesker back at Spencer's mansion." Chris sighed heavily and rubbed his temples. "Look at the other one; it's why I called you in here."

He frowned in confusion, unsure what to make of Chris' statement. But when he placed the second photo in front of the one of Jill, he felt the world stop around him and the air fly out of his lungs.

It was a small portrait picture of a woman in her mid-twenties, she had shoulder length brown hair and the strangest crimson eyes. But her face, he would recognise it anywhere, it haunted his dreams, his nightmares, it was the face he had fallen in love with.

"Is it really her?" He barely manages to ask, he can't say her name as it's been so long. He can feel tears threatening to fall and he realises he hasn't cried since her death.

"I know my sister when I see her." Was Chris' reply as he crossed his arms over his chest and nodded at one of the men in the room who returned the nod as confirmation to go ahead. "That photo was taken in Africa along with the one of Jill, bio-terrorism is building up there and so I'm heading in to get some answers."

"I'm going with you." Steve said with a determination that he hasn't had in years. "Knowing that there's a chance she's alive, I have to go, there's no choice about it."

"I had a feeling you'd say that and with you're experience, you'll be a great help. Is tomorrow too soon for you to depart?" The blonde lady asked him as she typed something on the only laptop in the conference room.

"Tomorrow is perfect." Both Steve and Chris replied in unison.

Meanwhile somewhere in Africa Wesker and Excella were having a meeting in one of their facilities. The room was dark and Wesker was sat on the black leather sofa next to Excella who was putting away the used needle back into her briefcase.

Two other figures were also in the room, one was covered in a cloak with a mask covered her face so others would not know her identity and the other one was staring out of the observation window down into the laboratory below.

"I have heard that BSSA operatives will be working their way here in a few days." Excella said as she stood up and made her way to leave the dark room. "I do hope they enjoy the surprise we left for them."

"Yes indeed, they won't be expecting Las Plagas here and by the time they realise that's not the real threat it will be far too late." Wesker too stood up and made his way over to the figure standing by the window and placed his right hand under the chin and forced the person to look up at him.

"What would you like me to do, Wesker?" A female voice asked him, waiting for instruction like any military personnel would.

"Well I'm sure Chris Redfield will be making an appearance after those photos we leaked of the two of you. I say when the time is right; we give him a warm welcome, don't you?" He smirked as he knew she would do anything he asked.

"As you wish Wesker." She replied and turned her face away from him and returned her gaze back onto the people in the room below.

"Claire, you are by far the most advanced creations on this Earth. You have nothing to fear, he shall pay for leaving you to die." He spoke and his words had two meanings and everyone but Claire knew the true meaning behind them.

"Perhaps I was blessed in having my memories lost to me."

A/N: I know it's short but it's setting up the situation in how they are brought back together. The story now goes into Resident Evil 5. Please let me know what you think.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Welcoming Party

She knows that something is wrong with this world, there is something that is destroying people's lives; however she has no idea what it is. Wesker informs her that it's because they're not like the two of them, superior beings that see the world with clarity and are the future of this world. When she asks him why they forced the woman Jill to join them, he merely replies that Jill is too stupid to do what's best for her.

Claire doesn't know much about this world, she's only been awake for three months and has always been by Wesker's side. She remembers Jill's face when she was disobedient and was brought in to be 'fixed.' Her eyes had widened and she tried to reach Claire as if disbelieving she was real.

"_Claire perhaps I should inform you that you have a brother. He is evil and doesn't understand our goals, he wants to kill us, he wants the world to rot as it is. He is the enemy." Wesker told her as the guards dragged Jill away down the long corridor._

"_Then he is no brother of mine. You are all I know Wesker. I will stay with you forever." She replied and knew she had said the right words for Wesker had smirked at her and placed his hand under her chin, before following the guards and Jill down the corridor._

As Claire stares out at the people below her, going on about their business in the village; an image flashes through her mind, bright blue eyes looking at her. Then the image is gone just as quickly as it appeared and she knows that it is a memory from before her deep sleep, a memory of a past life. Those eyes make her curious as to whom they belong to and why she feels a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth when she thinks of them, but she pushes it aside.

Meanwhile Chris and Steve were just arriving at their designated area to meet Sheva Alomar, who would be their guide during their investigation and also assisting the two of them. It was selfish but he didn't care about the orders that Chris had received, the ones saying take out anyone dealing with bio hazard materials, all he cares about is finding Claire and setting things right.

The situation was a hell of a lot worse than they were led to believe. Las Plagas had been infecting the local population and had all but taken over. The main question that plagued Chris and Steve's mind was how on earth it had gotten to Africa in the first place. But in order to find those answers they had been given a lead on a man called Irving who was supposed to be a weapons dealer.

As the three of them scouted out the village, they noticed that a lot of the citizens were glaring at them with hostile eyes and that they were only waiting for an order to attack them. However it wasn't until they were reaching the square that the infected locals decided to give them a welcoming party.

The odds were not in their favour, but thankfully the crazed infected citizens didn't posses guns and so standing up against the wall of an abandoned building, Chris, Steve and Sheva pounded bullets into their enemies for there was no saving them. It was either fight or die, showing mercy was absolutely out of the equation.

Still as the bodies pilled up the ammo went down and they were running out of time. If help didn't arrive soon then they would be out of ammo and it would be game over. There just didn't seem to be any end of them.

"Chris make sure you're away from the gate, I'm coming in hot." Kirk radioed in suddenly and his attack helicopter unleashed two rockets at the big red metal gate that had sealed them into the market square of the village. "Go, Delta team said they are closing in on the target in a building not far from here. I'll upload the co-ordinates to you now." Just as quickly as he had come, Kirk flew off again.

The remaining locals had scurried off and retreated from the assault on the three of them and were heading up to cause trouble elsewhere.

"That was lucky." Sheva said she reloaded her pistol and started leading the way out of the square towards the building Kirk had described.

"Luck seems to be the only thing on our side." Chris commented dryly as he followed after her.

Steve couldn't have agreed more with the two BSAA agents, however he couldn't shake the feeling that this little welcoming party was merely the beginning of what was to come.

A/N: Sorry for massive delay, been having problems with my laptop. Will try and update soon. Please let me know what you think. Thanks.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: A Glimpse Of Hope:

On making their way to Delta team's location, Chris, Steve and Sheva received a very distressing radio call.

"Oh god!" A young male voice cried out, pure horror carrying every syllable.

"What the hell is that thing?" An older male voice this time.

Other voices cry and shout out over the transmission, gunfire unloading into an unknown foe before the signal cuts out.

The three of them stop in an alleyway as Sheva tries to contact them again.

"Delta team, come in!... Please respond!" Her voice thick with desperation and pleading, after all these men are her friends, fellow countrymen, their comrades in arms.

They wait a minute and then another but no reassuring message is sent. They look at each other, unable to say that Delta team is probably dead. It comes with the job of fighting monsters on a daily basis but it doesn't make it any harder. Their expressions bleak, the trio silently agree to carry on and simply hope for the best.

It doesn't take them long to finally reach the building that Delta team was last heard from. As soon as they enter the rickety derelict building that is barely standing up, it reeks of death. The stains of blood on the floor and sprays on the wall do nothing to ease the trio's worries. When they reach the third floor they discover their first fallen comrade, he his propped against the wall, a gap where his shoulder used to be.

Chris curses under his breath, while Sheva prays for his soul to find peace. Steve stands alert for whatever had killed this young soldier would have taken on the rest of Delta team and quite possibly taken them all out to. The sudden pang of disappointment makes him feel guilty; he was hoping to find Claire not more corpses.

After checking that the dead soldier won't mutate and come back to haunt them, they continue onwards. The rest of the floor is littered with more squad members from Delta team, all brutally torn to pieces like rag dolls. When the reach the fourth floor they discover some black residue that can only be described as goo dripping down the walls and making puddles on the concrete corridors.

Having absolutely no idea what the creature was that has mysteriously taken out an entire squad of trained professionals who are no strangers to the world of monsters and nightmares. The three of them have no choice but to continue on, they need answers to so many questions and besides if they don't fight, who will?

When they reach the corridor leading to the lift for access to the fifth floor they find another dead soldier laying in a pool of the thick black goo substance. Keeping their weapons and the ready they cautiously walk round to the lift only to find that the need a key to unlock the gates to the lift.

"Bloody typical, there's always a key." Chris says sarcastically before lightly punching the wall in frustration.

"Come on, there's a hallway just here, let's see if it's down this way." Steve points his thumb down the dim light hallway before heading round the corner.

The hallway is rather short and only leads to a furnace room, but it doesn't take long for them to find the key sitting in the middle of the floor.

And for death to finally rear its ugly head.

The black goo substance suddenly comes to life and consumes the body of the dead soldier it was surrounding. It uses the body as a host and the goo forms limbs around and to stalk down the hallway to the fresh prey that has wondered into its nest.

As fate would have it, Chris, Steve and Sheva just happened to walk back round the corner to come face to face with this new monstrosity.

"Crap! Get back!" Chris shouted as he aimed his pistol and shot several round into it whilst the other two retreated and gave some covering fire so he too could get some distance from the Black beast.

"We're in a dead end! What do we do?!" Sheva reloaded her gun and checked her surroundings only to find no escape route.

"I don't think our bullets are doing anything!" Steve stated as the giant black limbed being never stopped in its approach.

"I'm guessing this is the thing that took out Delta team!" Chris panted and knocked down one of the flammable tanks to try and slow it down.

"Well if we don't do something fast, we'll end up just like them!" Sheva's voice echoed out and their desperation was starting to get to them.

Making sure Chris was safely out of the way, Steve shot the flammable tank just as the monster reached and engulfed it in flames. It let out a howling shriek and crumpled to the floor in agony before slowly trying to get back up again.

"It's weak to fire! Get in the furnace!" Chris barked at them.

Sheva wasted no time in running over to the other flammable tank and knocking it over just as Chris had done. Steve kept firing into it and drawing its attention so Chris could stand by the furnace controls and Sheva made her way to the other entrance so Steve would have help keeping it in there long enough.

"So far, so good." Chris said trying to keep everyone as calm as possible.

Steve stepped into the furnace room and coaxed the monster, shooting every now and then to ensure it kept following him. Naturally it did and that's when things got hairy as it were.

Being in a confined space the monster was able to use one of it black almost worm like arms to throw Steve onto his back. Sheva came in and fired bullets into it as Steve rolled to his side and pushed himself up.

"Now! Get out of there!" Chris bellowed as he hit the switch and the warning alarm started going off.

The monster must have sense it was in danger it started moving faster and towards Sheva who was backing away but still blazing bullets into its black flesh. Steve saw that the doors were closing them in and so he vaulted himself off the floor and half carried half tackled Sheva out of the furnace just as they shut on the monster and the inferno disintegrated everything in the steal container.

"You guys alright?" Chris asked as he helped Sheva off of the floor. Both herself and Steve panting with a dire need for oxygen but also relief they wasn't fried alive.

"Been better" Steve replied and brushed himself off and they all nodded and high tailed it out of the room and back to the lift. Not wanting to stick around and see if the thing was dead, because honestly if it could survive that then they were seriously in need of something short of a nuke.

Using the key to open the gates to get in the lift, they checked their guns and ammo and took a moment to themselves that they had miraculously survived.

"I hope there's no more of those things, whatever it was." Sheva said as she took in her two companions. This assignment just kept getting from bad to worse and she had an inkling that those two were right in the middle of it. _'These two surely are something. Whatever is going on, these will it out and I'll be damned if I get left behind.'_

When the doors opened to the fifth floor they all took one step out of the lift and stopped at the sight before them.

On the opposite side of the room, lay the commander of Delta team propped up against the wall, and a woman standing over him, whispering to him. The commander moved his eyes over to them and smiled with relief at seeing someone friendly appear. The woman who was wearing a tight combat suit turned to follow his gaze and they shinned a bright crimson red.

Red eyes, brown hair and that face that haunted his dreams every single night for the past seven years.

But before his eyes had fully widened at the sight of her standing a mere few feet away from him, she launched herself through the window at incredible strength and speed.

'_Claire'_

Despite everything all hope was not lost.

Now all he had to do was catch up to her.

A/N: I know it's been an incredibly looooooooooooong time since I last posted a chapter. But I hope I haven't lost my flare and that you enjoyed reading this chapter. Thank you all, you are simply the best and I promise not to leave it again.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Message In A Bottle

'_All it takes is mere seconds.' _The commander of Delta team thinks as he reflects upon the happenings of the last fifteen minutes. He can see Chris, Sheva and Steve and he can't help the small tug of his lips as he seems them alive. But the feeling is gone just as quickly as it appeared for there is absolutely no doubt now that the rest of his team is dead.

He feels the guilt swallow him just as surely as the Black monstrosity had engulfed his team and torn them to shreds. He honestly doesn't want to think about their last moments on Earth, terrified and desperate and certain in their coming demise. He briefly wonders if they thought he'd abandoned them, led them to the monster and betrayed their trust.

He wonders if any of them managed to shoot themselves before the monster caught them.

"Commander?!" Sheva runs and kneels at his left side, taking in the damage. It is clear that the wound in his side will kill him, he doesn't have much time and he must relay the message that the strange woman gave him.

Chris and Steve have recovered from the shock of the sight of Claire. Knowing she is alive and seeing it is two separate things. Steve wants to ask a thousand questions to the commander but holds himself back. He is here on this mission as a guest; he has no authority for he is not part of the BSAA.

"Commander, what happened here?" Chris knows his question is badly worded for it is obvious but he needs to ask so he can put it in his report if and when they get out of here and resolve this whole situation.

"Was just checking the area. We were supposed to meet an arms dealer here by the name of Irving. Looks like he set us up..." The commander coughs up blood and the world spins away from him for a second before violently coming back to him. "That _thing_ came out of nowhere." He spits out with undeniable hatred and rage. "Gave it my best and thought I was done for... But then that woman appeared and hauled me up here."

"She saved you?" Chris isn't surprised at the fact that Claire pulled the commander out of harm's way. What concerned him the most was her timing and it was easy to see that she had clearly known about the coming attack.

"Don't know what she was doing here but she was just suddenly standing next me and she had such strength that she practically threw that monster across the room."

_The Black beast had already torn a hole in his left side and he was bleeding out on the floor when it looked like it was about to finish him off. Some of his team members were already dead, some were trying to shoot the monster away from him and some were trying to escape. He was expecting more pain or perhaps to stop feeling altogether when he heard the monster make some awful shrieking noise as if it was in pain._

_That's when he looked up and saw the woman holding the monster away from him with ease as if it was nothing but a mere child and launch it across the room without glancing back at it. He was paralysed with awe and shock when she wasted no time lifting up and carrying him away from his team mates. _

_He could just see as they went up the lift the monster starting to get back up and the deathful cries of everyone left behind._

"_We have to go back!" He roared at the woman as she not so gently propped him against the wall. "We can't leave them to die!" He struggled to get up again but his body refused to obey his wishes._

_She didn't answer him, couldn't answer him. She just looked at him with her crimson eyes and the commander could see that she was disturbed by the nature of the beast. The sounds from the floor below died down and eventually stopped altogether and he wasn't sure how to feel about that. _

"_I'm sorry." She whispered after a while, she was looking out the window intently and it appeared as if she was waiting for some sort of signal. _

_Silence enveloped them for what seemed like an eternity. The commander knew he was in no danger from being attacked by the strange black monster but he also knew that he was still bleeding out and that the woman before him wasn't going to do anything about it. _

"_I don't understand this world." Her voice showed her confusion when her face still showed her sorrow. "I wasn't supposed to save you..." More confusion and she took a quick glance at his face before turning her attention back to the window. _

"_So why did you?" His voice was getting hoarse and blood coating his gloved hands was not slowing down._

_However she ignored his question and merely said "Tell them to get out while they can. Turn back now and they may just get out alive." She wasn't threatening in any way merely stating the facts. "They will not find what they seek."_

"She took off as soon as you came up." The commander finished his story and sighed with relief that his pain was nearly over.

Chris, Steve and Sheva all looked at each other and wasn't sure how to process Claire's words. Sheva placed her hands on the commander's shoulders, to give him some kind of last comfort before he departed this world.

"Finding Irving is your mission. After that is up to you." Then he was gone.

Sheva closed his eyes and said a prayer for him before standing up and joining the two men. Chris merely walked slowly to the window Claire had jumped out of and saw that there was scaffolding they could use to climb down the building to continue their journey.

"We do as the commander said and find this Irving. I'm hoping that we can find all the answers we need from this guy. Any objections?" Chris asked, though he knew there wasn't much in the matter.

"Let's do this." Steve said as he made his way over with Sheva following behind. They carefully climbed their way down the rickety scaffolding and started walking the empty streets once more.

Unknown to them Claire was only standing on the roof of a nearby building out of their sight but clearly able to watch their every move. She was disappointed with them when they decided to carry on with the mission assigned to them. She had hoped they would have listened to her, despite everything they had been through. But that was apparently too much to ask for and now they had played right into Wesker's hands.

She brought her radio up to her mouth and spoke "It worked exactly as you planned." She had played the part that he had given her and for that she was very pleased with herself and couldn't help the small smile that graced her lips.

"Excellent my dear. Now return to me at once." He commanded and she instantly withdrew from her position.

Making her way back through the streets towards where her transport would be waiting for her, Claire couldn't help the tug in her heart when she had disobeyed Wesker's order and saved the man from the monster. Thankfully he would never find out and unfortunately the guy had bled out regardless of her interfering. She might not understand this world but she had a slight inkling that Wesker might not have all the answers.

Meanwhile back in Wesker's hideout, Excella came striding into his office and a small monitor on his desk with a devilish grin decorating her artificial perfect face.

"What is this?" Wesker tilted his head ever to slightly in Excella's direction annoyed at her unscheduled interruption.

"There's something you want to see." Was all she replied and clicked on the video feed that had been recorded.

It showed all the events of Delta teams encounter with the monster they had planted there and it also showed Claire's intervention and clear violation of the orders he'd given to her. This disturbed Wesker on many levels not that he was going to let anybody especially Excella know that.

"Leave me." He spoke in an icy cold tone and Excella had enough intelligence not to say anything else on the matter and simply left leaving the monitor where she placed it so Wesker could continue replaying the video again and again.

Only after watching it countless times did Wesker finally pause the video on Claire's angelic face. He subconsciously stroked the screen with his thumb and said "Oh Dear Heart, what have you done?" He had been hoping that something like this would never happen, that she would blindly follow his every word but it appeared that a part of the old Claire was still intact.

He had to solve this immediately and he knew exactly how he would so, and it wouldn't be the way Excella was expecting him to do. No he would do something so radical that it would change things and then there would be no going back.

For anyone.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Monster That Dwells Within:

She didn't quite know what to expect when she made it back to base. It had never crossed her mind that maybe the problem wasn't Wesker at all; maybe the problem had always been with her. After all she had been near death and stuck in cryogenic stasis for several years and had no memory of her life before waking up in an cold white empty room with only Wesker greeting her.

She knew one thing for certain, that she had been a normal human girl when she left the world and had returned to it far superior to anything or anyone else. But she didn't suspect that at one point she was the monster killing everything in sight and had to be 'put down.'

Wesker had greeted her coldly upon her return and she instantly knew that he was aware of her actions back at the building when she pulled the commander out of the killing blow. The devilish smile that graced Excella's face as she walked past spoke everything to her and she hated the woman even more than she had already thought possible. Unfortunately she wasn't allowed any time to even contemplate ending the insignificant woman's life because Wesker had ushered her into his office and slammed the door shut behind them.

Claire followed his every movement with her eyes without moving her body in the slightest. He remained silent and briskly reached his desk and turned his monitor around to face and tapped a few keys so the video clip can begin playing. She doesn't need to see the evidence thrown in her face but she watches it silently as it's what Wesker wants. She can tell by the way he stands that his muscles are tense and that he is assessing her reactions but she won't give him any indication as to what she is thinking for that was one of the first things she mastered from him.

The video stops playing when it shows her diving out the window and the screen goes black. She knows he his displeased with her yet she can't tell by how much and she can't find a way to explain her actions and nor is she certain she wants to. Claire knows she is loyal to this man on the other side of the desk but she has no inkling as to what he wants to hear. She isn't afraid of him when the rest of them are, she knows she is strong and can take anything that he throws at her, even if that was to himself.

Wesker is surprised that she hasn't moved since he began to play the video back to her but he never lets it show because that would be a weakness and he doesn't have any. Her stillness is unsettling because all he's ever really known is a Claire of action, back when she was alive she was confident and not afraid to speak her mind or defend herself and those around her. However that Claire died and now another one stands before him, one he helped sculpt if only barely.

What no one knows is that the Claire that faces him solidly silently is not one of his doing. He merely took her body for study on the unique virus she carried, and in doing so she melded with it and made it her own. So he placed her in cryogenic stasis and in her own time she slowly brought herself back to life.

Finally her eyes stop staring at the blank screen and rest on him but for the life of him he can't decipher that look in her eyes. He who knows this version of Claire the best knows nothing of her right in this instance. She still has yet to move other than her eyes and it seems that she has no indication to do anything other than stare at him.

He doesn't like this one bit, for she is making him speak first, forcing him to expose his next move when he doesn't know hers. So he decides right there and then to show her more of the truth about herself. All he can do now is make her question herself so she will no longer question him and hope to hell it works because she will make his plans succeed or break them and he can't allow her to have that power over him any longer.

So he takes and few more keys and the monitor clicker back to life and begins to play footage that were taken a couple of years back. She says nothing and merely places her eyes on the screen waiting for whatever it will display.

This time however she is not prepared for it showed and her doubts are realised all at once.

_It shows the room in which she awakened, but this was recorded while she still slept. The white empty room only contains her in her tank and at first she wonders what is the point of showing her dead to the world when finally something unexpected happens. Bright red lights start flashing and an alarm rings alert and the glass to her tank starts cracking, guards and scientists rush in both excited and terrified with guns at the ready._

_The glass shatters everywhere and the men shield themselves while a sleepy Claire slumps out of the tank. She doesn't move and the minutes roll by when one of the scientists cautiously approaches her and places a hand on her neck to check for a pulse. He merely shakes his head and starts to get up again when in a flash her hands grip his arm tightly and he cries out. The guards click their safety off and shout warnings out to her but she remains motionless._

_Then as if in slow motion, her head slowly rises up to met their gazes, eyes burning red so intently that the men al gasp and the scientists that she holds in her grasp starts to shake in terror. But before any of them can react she has already moved. In mere seconds she has broken the scientists arm and dislocated his shoulder before throwing him the guards. Then lunging after him she uses her new found strength to massacre everyone in the room. _

_Screams fill the room and drowns out the shouts coming over the speakers. When the last man is dead, Wesker bursts into the room and stops in his tracks when he sees the death and destruction she has caused. Claire slowly turns around to face him, her body coated in blood, the intent to kill clearly showing through her eyes. She launches at him and he is unprepared by her strength but he manages to throw her back hard enough that she collides with the stasis tank. _

_Claire shakes her head to stop the world spinning and dashes towards him again and pins him to the ground. She is snarling and trying to claw at his face but he has her wrists in his grip and rolls them over so he is on top off her and fully in control. He wastes no time in smashing her head into the hard floor countless times before blood flows from the back of her skull and she stops fighting him and returns to the void. He unravels himself from her and carefully picks her up as if she was a child and holds her tenderly cradled against is chest and carries her away out of the room._

Again the screen grows dark and she instantly snaps her gaze to meet his. She doesn't know what this means other than that he spared her when she was clearly the same if not worse than the monster that eviscerated delta team. "I don't understand." She eventually says and she can't find any logic to his actions in the video.

He doesn't answer her and simply moves round the desk to stand before her, takes her hands and pulls her toward him so she has no choice but to face him. She is completely under his thrall and he loves it beyond comprehension beyond reason but it doesn't matter. Wesker still remains silent as he removes his shades and places them on the desk so she can see into his equally crimson eyes.

Claire is mesmerised and afraid but not for her life, but not sure what else she could feel fear for. She senses his intentions and she doesn't know where this is coming from but she doesn't want to deny it or more appropriate to say she doesn't want to deny him because she has felt this since she was reborn into this world.

"We are all born monsters Claire. But is how we evolve and strive forward that makes us Gods." He wastes no time in crashing his hard lips to her soft supple ones and craves more of her as they tackle each other and vie for dominance but he won't let her win and so harshly bits her bottom lip so she gasps and he dives his tongue straight into the hot crevasse of her mouth.

She doesn't know how any of this led to this and for the life of her she simply doesn't care.

Wesker swirls them around and violently pushes her against his desk and presses himself against her, one hand gripping the back of her head preventing her escape not that she seems to want to while his other hand is secured around her waist. Her hands clench the back of his tight suit hard that they threaten to rip the fabric clean off him, but he doesn't care because he plunges his tongue deeper still and she _moans_ into him and it sends him off the deep end.

With her as his queen, his goddess, he has simply just won.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Turmoil

Losing themselves in the passionate consuming blaze of one another they only break apart when they hear Excella's foot falls walking down the corridor heading straight for them. Her lips bruised, swollen and bleeding from where he bit them, Wesker can't help but smirk in claiming Claire for himself. He's confident now that she will forever be loyal to him and never question his orders again. He will admit that he's desired her ever since she became something far superior to any human, she is perfection with the virus and evolution and he has always desired nothing else but perfection.

Having secured her place and hopefully proven she is still on his side Claire feels a lot better about the whole situation. Wesker no longer doubts her loyalty to him and the cause and she is satisfied with how he views her, knowing now that she is desirable to him fills her with happiness.

When Excella walks into the office any traces of their intimacy is gone, her lips have healed and are no longer swollen and neither are Wesker's. The bronze skinned woman ignores Claire and eyes Wesker hungrily for she wants to be queen of the new world but little does she know that position has already been filled. Claire glares daggers into Excella's skull for she has never liked the woman but seeing her eyeball Wesker like that, she wants nothing more than to shed the woman into tiny messy pieces.

Excella goes to touch Wesker's arm but he wraps one hand around her throat, not tight enough to choke her but enough to mark the skin. Claire's eyes widen as the action brings back a flash of a memory. She remembers the same black gloved hand tightening around what feels like her own neck. But the image is gone before she can see it clearly but the tingling sensation, the phantom of a ghost tracing the line of her slender neck mimics what she's witnessing in front of her. She dismisses herself in silence for she knows that whatever the two converse about it's not for her to hear.

Walking down the corridor with no particular destination in mind she comes to a stop and lifts her shaking hand up to her neck and lightly strokes it ensuring it's still free and unmarked before staring at her hand in shock and disbelief. Her eyes go blurry and she's transported back to when the memory took place.

_It's late at night and the only light is emitted from the moon. She's outside a building and it's eerily silent and she's afraid that something will come out at her at any second. She's breathing heavily for she's reliving a nightmare she thought and hoped she was done with. She takes a moment to catch her breath and steady her racing heart when footsteps sound behind her, but their too controlled, not shambling to be a member of the undead so it must be a person and she hopes that it's her fellow prisoner._

_She turns to face the newcomer and her eyes go wide as the person in front of her should surely be dead. According to the rumours she's heard the man standing in front of her should have died back in Raccoon City where her brother had first encountered the nightmare at the mansion. But for whatever reason he is standing in front of her and even though he's wearing dark sunglasses she can tell that he recognises who she is. _

_In a movement too fast for her see he's already wrapped one hand tightly around her throat and lifted her off the ground. She's using both of her hands to try and release herself but it makes no difference. _

"_Imagine seeing you here dear heart." His voice is the same now as it was back then and he holds no warmth for her or anyone else for that matter. This is the monster that she fears most because he so intently wants to see her brother dead and most likely herself along with him._

"_Let go!" She hisses at him but it doesn't carry as much venom in it as she would have liked because he's slowly cutting of her air supply bit by bit._

_He grins menacingly at her and brings her face close so it's only a couple of centimetres from his. His breath on her face as he speaks sends chills down her spine that she shivers violently. "You're in no position to make demands. Thankfully I have no interest in you." _

_Before she can brace herself he throws her aside and her head smack hard on the ground. She manages to pick herself up but when she looks around she finds herself once again alone in the black night that hides more merciless creatures. She wipes her temple and finds that she's bleeding from where she hit the ground. She wastes no more time in the vulnerability of being outside and heads inside to continue to try and escape this hell hole._

Her vision comes back to her resting her gaze on her hand that is still shaking. She remembers that Wesker had found her before she had been left behind by her brother but he held no interest in her and cared nothing about her. She didn't want to jump to conclusions but these memories were definitely painting her saviour in a very different light than she was led to believe. Something must have happened between then and her dying to change the way he viewed her, besides she didn't know when this incident had happened it could have been many years before she died.

'_Or it could have been five minutes before you died.'_ The nagging voice in her head is getting louder and she's not sure if she should listen to it or if it's just plain paranoia. Claire comes to the conclusion that she must find out more of her past to uncover the truth perhaps decide for herself what's truly best for her. There's a knot of guilt in her stomach as she feels that this investigation is a betrayal to Wesker and all he has done for her.

However she can't deny the fact that some things don't add up and her instincts are guiding her to not just blindly follow his orders. She's going to have to play this game carefully for she doesn't want him finding out especially if it turns out he was right all along. Now all she needs is a valid reason to leave the base and start her digging.

"Ah Claire I'm so glad you hadn't gone too far. I need you to go check on Irving and Jill for me. Ensure that they play their parts correctly." Excella approached her and she was disappointed to see that her neck bore no marks from Wesker's grip on it moments ago.

How she loathed this scheming woman but Wesker obviously saw some use in her working for him. Claire knew that one day she would get the chance to end her life and she'd be lying if she said she wasn't looking forward to it immensely. For now she would play the part of puppet and do as instructed for it gave her the perfect opportunity to leave.

"As you wish Excella." She spoke just like anyone else under their command but she didn't hide the intent from her eyes as she stared the older woman down.

Excella switched uncomfortably but smiled devilishly at her before strutting on her heels going to check on the other test subjects.

Claire wasted no time in heading for the exit and making her way to the mining facility that Irving and Jill had been instructed to go to. As she ran through the desolate streets of the African city she couldn't help but smile to herself as she felt the wind rush past her and happenings of the monsters and its victims blurring into a static background. The adrenaline pumping through her veins and the strain of not ending Excella's life there and then made her eager for a fight. She needed to release the fuelled up energy inside of her and so she really hoped that she could fight something at the mining facility for it would be the perfect cure for the turmoil bumbling deep inside her core.

A/N: Sorry I'm not so quick at posting chapters up. This story has so many possibilities and directions it can head that I can't pick one very easily. Anyway hoped you enjoyed this chapter.


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